9-1-1: Nashville Season 1, Episode 12 Review: Eddie and Buck Brought Something This Show is Missing

This is the most that I have ever liked 9-1-1 Nashville. And it 100% has to do with Eddie and Buck appearing in Season 1 Episode 12 “Spirit of the Games.” Nashville is a little bit too Dynasty and soapy for me. So Buck and Eddie entering the scene automatically changes the dynamic that we’re seeing on the show. Everything feels a little lighter, more playful, and the camaraderie that Nashville was missing was shining bright. 

MORE: Need a refresher of where we left off? Read our review for 9-1-1: Nashville Season 1 Episode 11 “Don Begins”

On the Buck and Eddie front, I have so many notes. 

For one, Eddie and Buck were glued to each other 24/7. Glued at the hip at the bar, during the games, or even at the firehouse. And it made it clear that no matter where they go, the bond that they have is something cosmic. Also they were very much giving husband and husband. Did you see how Eddie picked out Buck’s clothes so they could go out? And what about the fight when Blue shoved Buck and Eddie locked in? I saw that. You saw that. We saw that. 

And I’m not even bothered by what happened at the end with Buck possibly sleeping with Dixie.

Nothing’s going to come of that. Buck is going to go back to LA with Eddie and everything’s going to be all right. (Well besides the previewed kidnapping in next week’s 9-1-1.) Do I wish the flirting between Buck and Dixie didn’t happen? Yes. I don’t like how the 9-1-1 universe continues to perpetuate this narrative of Buck being hypersexual as if that’s the only thing he is. But this is merely a blip. Eddie and Buck were the light of “Spirit of the Games” and many times felt like the voice of the viewer aka me who has been talking about Blue being a nepo baby and this firehouse being super expensive. 

On the Don and Station 113 of it all, like I mentioned earlier, this is the most that I’ve liked them. And it has to do with the fact that Eddie and Buck brought a light and joy to the show that it was missing. I do think that Don and the rest of the 9-1-1 Nashville cast were a little bit out of character. I’ll admit that. I really did not see Don giving that opening speech or how competitive he got with Ryan against the other firefighters. But the fact remains that I could see them as a team in this episode in a way that I have never seen before. 

What Nashville needs to do is hold on to what Eddie and Buck give off: found family. Because 9-1-1 has had a beenado, Athena landed a plane, and most notably, they went to space. And all of that works despite the show’s buffoonery because of the found family element of it all. They get lost quite often as a show and I question their characters all the time over on my podcast Tales from the 118. But the fact remains that I keep coming back because they have good bones. And those bones are grounded in found family. 9-1-1: Nashville needs to harness that with their own characters.

Then there’s Blue. 

I love the fact that “Spirit of the Games” acknowledged that Blue is a nepo baby. It’s not going to erase how this show started. But I feel like I respect the show just a twinge more because they know that they might have started out on a bad leg. Acknowledgment is one of the first steps towards healing. So I gave Blue a little bit more grace this episode. And I really liked how he was kind and considerate no matter what. And he was less of a country bumpkin and more of just a sweet soul. That I can work with. 

Do I have any idea what’s coming up next for 9-1-1 Nashville? No. 

Even Blythe, my queen and goddess, was getting along with Dixie. If anything, it’s going to be Dixie that is going to stir up trouble because she wants Don. And I think she wants him because Blythe has him. And because I don’t like Don, I think he should just step aside and let Blythe and Dixie have a real conversation about the tension brewing between them. Because those two women could be powerful together. But Nashville is too much of a coward to really go there. But I bet there’s fanfiction.

9-1-1: Nashville airs new episodes Thursdays at 9 pm ET on ABC.

What did you think about 9-1-1: Nashville Season 1, Episode 12 ‘Spirit of the Games’? Share with us in the comments below!